What is the Harlem Renaissance?
A cultural movement in the 1920s and 1930s that celebrated African American art, literature, and music.
The Jazz Age of African American Literature and Art: Exploring the Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement in the 1920s and 1930s that celebrated the unique experiences and perspectives of African Americans through art, literature, and music.
Centered in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City, the movement included writers such as Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston, who explored the complexities of black identity and community in their works. Painters like Aaron Douglas and photographers such as James Van Der Zee depicted the diverse and vibrant lives of African Americans in their art. Jazz and blues musicians such as Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington represented the sound of the Harlem Renaissance and showcased the talents of black artists to a wider audience.
The Harlem Renaissance provided a space for African American artists to share their voices and experiences with a wider audience, challenging societal norms and paving the way for future generations of writers, artists, and musicians.
The Harlem Renaissance had a significant impact on American literature, as black writers explored the complexities of race and identity in their works. Here are two examples of how the movement influenced literature:
Jean Toomer's Cane is a landmark work of the Harlem Renaissance, featuring poems, prose, and drama that explore African American life in the rural South and urban North.
Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God is a novel that explores the themes of love, gender, and empowerment through the eyes of its main character, Janie Crawford.